BECOMING LIKE JESUS

BECOMING LIKE JESUS Samson Aderinto Adedokun samdokun@gmail.com Facebook/Samson Aderinto Adedokun Instagram/Samdokun Twitter/samdokun Phil 2:5-8 NASB 5 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,6 who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. 8 Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. INTRODUCTION In the recent past, much has been said about mentoring. Across the different spheres of life, many people are advocating that mentors and coaches are indispensable for one to succeed in life. So one of the trademarks of our generation is that more and more people are patterning their lives after models and mentors. Many young people are developing their value systems based on the life of someone who they consider to have attained the degree of success they aspire to. These include entertainers, footballers, movie stars, fashion icons, business moguls, and many more. Even among believers, we are in a generation where many have adopted certain leaders, ministers, and laymen alike, as their standards. They speak like them, pray like them, repeat the things that they say, reason like they reason, and, ridiculously, for some, they even try to dress as they dress. Many of these people call themselves disciples of the person they copy. Those who consider themselves as mentors, equally refer to these as “my disciples.” However, we need to be reminded that the Bible does not call any of us to follow after another human being. The intent of God has always been and remains that we become like His Son Jesus. While it is true that humans play a significant role in shaping and molding us, mentors and mentees must understand that they cannot replace Jesus. Paul understood this very well. In 1 Corinthians 4, he challenged the church to imitate him as a Father through the gospel. His platform for operation was clear. It was grounded in the life of Jesus. As though to be clearer, later in chapter 11, he emphatically said to them, “Imitate me, as I also imitate Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1). It is this that makes our theme important today. As Christians, God desires that we all should become more and more like His Son, Jesus. According to Paul, this means that we are to “walk worthy of our calling” (Ephesians 4:32). As Christians, our ultimate yearning must be to become more and more like Jesus. Our heart’s goal must be to develop His character, exhibit His nature, and reflect His behavioral patterns. The truth is that we are called to look like Jesus looks. We are called to think as Jesus thinks. We are called to act as Jesus acts. We are called to speak as Jesus speaks. We are not called to follow after men. We are not called to be disciples of other humans who themselves are believers like us. We are called to learn from them as they learn from Jesus. So how do we do this? We must turn not to any other example but the life of the person we are seeking to learn from – Jesus Christ! 1. WE MUST DEVELOP A MODIFIED HEART. PHIL. 2:5-6 5 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 5 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,6 who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, If we are to become like Jesus, we must develop a modified heart. Every man is consumed by his thoughts and imaginations. The writer of the book of Proverbs says that the heart of a is what makes a man. In other words, how we think reflects who we are. If a man’s heart is all about his thoughts and ideas, he cannot please God. James noted that a man whose heart does not align with God is at loggerheads with him. This means that we need our hearts changed. Our hearts have to be modified from what they were to what God will have them be. Romans 12 calls this a transformation. This transformation means that we have to develop the kind of mindset that Jesus had. The key here is the term “mind” or “attitude.” It comes from the word “Phroneo” which refers to the basic orientation, bent, and thought patterns of one’s mind, rather than to the intellect itself. In other words, our mind contains our attitudes, desires, and will to surrender our lives. It includes one's "worldview" or outlook and how it influences perception. Those who will become like Jesus must have a heart that is transformed from the one that operates in carnal people. You cannot become like Christ if your mind is not set out to honor God above all, to worship Him alone, and to obey Him at all times. It is a call to a willingness to develop a maturing heart. Please note that this does not say a mature heart. Rather it is a heart that is growing, deepening, and yearning for God in such a way that it does not forget that he is but a product of God’s mercy and grace. It is a life that is always ceding right and control to God. it is a life that is never in contention for maintaining its purposes above those of God. 2. WE MUST DEVELOP A MINISTER’S HEART. Phil. 2:7 7 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. The second thing that we see is that becoming like Jesus requires us to develop a minister’s heart. This is the spirit of service. Jesus emptied himself. He put aside all his glory and took on the form of a human being. He came down to our level. He chose to let go of what he had so that he might be able to touch us. When the Bible says He made himself nothing, it means literally that He “emptied himself” like when one is pouring something out of a bottle until it is empty. So Jesus removed all that would stop him from doing the work of His Father. If we will become like Jesus, we must also learn to empty ourselves. We must empty ourselves of all things that can hinder us as we serve. You see, a servant cannot minister effectively if he has a baggage of things that he is clinging on to. You cannot be full and be filled by God for service. You cannot have your plans and have room for the plans of God. You cannot carry your status, possessions, titles, etc., and be able to serve as a servant. Jesus emptied Himself and became a servant. That is what we all must do to become like Him. 3. WE MUST DEVELOP A MEEK HEART. Phil. 2:8 8 Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. The third thing we must do is to learn meekness from Jesus. Those who will become like Jesus must constantly ask God to help them live a life of humility. Jesus humbled himself. He chose to be obedient. Humility is voluntary obedience to the instructions of God. Humility is doing the things that God has instructed me to do because I would rather honor Him than please myself. Jesus followed this path. He humbled himself to the point of experiencing death on the cross. “Death by the cross” was considered the most ignominious and degrading way for anyone to die. It was reserved only for criminals and even then, only those who were not citizens of the Roman Empire. But Jesus chose to allow this to happen. If we think about it for a moment, could he have chosen a different way? Yes. But, he accepted the choice The Father had made. Though painful, he humbled himself. The word humble means “to bring low.” Jesus brought himself low to obey His Father. It was an attitude of sacrifice. The truth therefore is that those who will become like Jesus must be willing to demonstrate the same spirit of meekness. We must humble ourselves to obey God. we must humble ourselves to serve God. We must humble ourselves to serve God’s people. we must humble ourselves to serve humanity. Meekness has to comply with the instructions of God. it is not a meekness according to our design. We cannot use other methods to bring this about. It has to be the way the Bible has instructed. Anything else is arrogance and pride on our part. CONCLUSION It is clear that when we begin to follow the example of Jesus, we will also begin to experience a greater manifestation of God in our lives. Look at what God did for Jesus. He gave Him the name that is above every other name. he made all things subject to Him. He made Him Lord over all things. The world has not remained the same since Jesus did all this. Do you know what this means? God will always honor those who choose to become like Jesus. Can you imagine what will happen in every church if all our educators begin to imitate Christ? Picture what will happen in the lives of our children if we have children ministry workers who are becoming more like Jesus! I see great things happening to every family, every ministry, every department, and every church. Picture what will happen to our nation when we all are like Jesus. Satan and his cohorts are certainly in trouble! As I think about this, I am experiencing tremendous excitement at the results that we could enjoy as God’s people. Of course, the question is, are we ready to become like Jesus?